kelly dobos sarah hawkins - crain's cleveland

Atalker, a competitorand a well-restedtech guru.

A $1 million man,a chemist and a publictransportation aficionado.

A communicator, a dedicated public servantand a new soccer fan.

Our 2008 20 in their 20scome from a variety of backgrounds and industries,but they all have at least onething in common: They’reeach doing their part tomake this region’s futurelook bright.

Read on to find out more.

Amanda AlmonCleveland Institute of Art

Miguelle EdmondsonErnst & Young

Fred Franks Jr.FIT Technologies/SchoolOne.com LLC

Sarah Hawkins DolezalThe Arcade/Chartwell Group LLC

Gayle HorwitzVorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP

Megan KimCouncil of Smaller Enterprises

Matt RadicelliRock the House Entertainment Group

Erin ReedJumpStart Inc.

Meredith ScerbaGreater Cleveland Sports Commission

Michelle SteinBrunswick Cos.

Steve WiserSpecialized Business Software Inc.

Ryan AndersonAnderson/Biro LLC

Laura BakerWHS Engineering Inc.

Louis BuchinoMirifex Systems LLC

Daniel CavoloThe Loyola Group LLC

Conor CoakleyColliers Ostendorf-Morris

Dan CooperNAI Daus

Kelly DobosGojo Industries Inc.

Brandy DunlapGreater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority

Joshua BruffDevelopers Diversified Realty Corp.

◆ Photography by Marc Golub ◆◆ See video at CrainsCleveland.com/twenty ◆

CCLB 04-28-08 Twenty in 20s 1 CCLB 4/24/2008 11:43 AM

“One hundred percent personality. To find someone inthis industry who has a personality is amazing. When Ifirst met her three years ago, that was the biggestthing.” – Bill Shepardson, president, WHS Engineering Inc.

Cleveland architectural firm. WHSwill assist Arkinetics with retailwork, renovation projects and various commercial projects, according to Susan Moore, a project manager at Arkinetics.

“She doesn’t back down at all,and handles everything well,” Mr.Shepardson said. “I’ve seen instances where people don’t expect her to have the knowledgeshe has.”

Miss Baker, who loved math butdecided engineering “was so much

better than being a mathteacher,” saidthe ability tosee the fruits ofher labor on adaily basis — ifshe’s nearCase, or outdowntown, forinstance — isthe biggestperk.

“It’s reallycool to walkaround andsay, even forthe littlestthing, to pointover and say, ‘Idid that,’” shesaid. “There’s a sense of ac-complishmentinvolved.”

Another perk: comparing “I didthat” stories with her father, Bob Baker, who retired from J W Belt Co.and worked previously for ClevelandCement and Northeastern Cement.

Mr. Baker pointed out to hisdaughter and her five siblings his “Idid thats,” which included work on the Rainforest at ClevelandMetroparks Zoo and the WolsteinCenter.

“Anywhere we went, he’d be ableto say that,” said Miss Baker, wholives in Painesville. “Now, the roleshave switched. When we were kids,it was so annoying. Now, it’s me doing it.”

— Joel Hammond

Bill Shepardson, president ofWHS Engineering Inc. inLakewood, is quick on thetrigger when asked why in

October he hired Laura Baker.“One hundred percent personality,”

Mr. Shepardson said. “To findsomeone in this industry who has apersonality isamazing. WhenI first met herthree years ago,that was thebiggest thing.”

Make thattwo ways, then,that Miss Bakeris a maverick inher field: She’salso standingtall in an industry domi-nated by men,something shehas dealt withsince her firstday at the University ofAkron.

“It’s better inbusiness than inschool, actually,because themen are a little more respectable,”Miss Baker said.

“You don’t really adjust to it; youdon’t get used to it. You’re alwaysthe woman.”

She first helped WHS assist MRNLtd.’s redevelopment of the EastFourth Street Neighborhood, andshe’s now focusing on two University Circle projects: the CaseTriangle, an arts, housing and retail development, and the redo of Tudor Arms, the former home ofthe Cleveland Job Corps Center.

Mr. Shepardson also creditedMiss Baker’s engaging personalitywith generating plenty of new work,most recently with Arkinetics, a

TT--22 CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS APRIL 28-MAY 4, 2008

Amanda Almon was one ofthe lucky ones.

She figured out early onwhat she wanted to do

with her life, thanks to a motherwho is an artist and a father who isa professor.

“I always knew I was going to bean artist since I was about 5 yearsold,” said Ms. Almon, 29, who is anassistant professor and chair-woman of biomedical art at theCleveland Institute of Art.

As a child, Ms. Almon spent a lotof time in her mother’s advertisingagency in Buffalo, N.Y., and withher father at the University at Buffalo, where he is a professor ofbiology and pharmacology.

As a result, she developed a love

◆ Amanda Almon ◆Age: 29

Assistant professor and chair, biomedical art

Cleveland Institute of Art

◆ Ryan Anderson ◆Age: 28

Founding partnerAnderson/Biro LLC

◆ Laura Baker ◆Age: 29

Project engineerWHS Engineering Inc.

◆ Joshua Bruff ◆Age: 24

Manager, mall operations andcommercial assets

Developers Diversified Realty Corp.

of both art and science, so she enrolled in the Rochester Instituteof Technology, where she discov-ered that a career in medical illus-tration would enable her to mergeher passions.

The institute was heavily involved in using computers tobring drawings “alive,” so Ms. Almon took that experience withher to the University of Michigan,where she earned a master’s of fineart. Michigan wasn’t yet using technology in medical illustration,so she had to form her own inde-pendent study curriculum.

“If I wasn’t using technology, Iwasn’t going to get a job and I wasn’t going to be applicable to theindustry,” she said.

Her work at Michigan helped herland a job as a 3D medical animator/illustrator at an advertising agencyin Fort Collins, Colo., where shecompleted medical illustrations ofpeople and animals, studied various types of art and medicine

and generally “wore a lot of hats,”Ms. Almon said.

Then one day she got a callabout a position for a professor ofmedical illustration at the Cleve-land Institute of Art. She applied,

got the job and was shocked tofind out that she also would be thenew chairwoman for the medicalillustration department.

“I didn’t know what it meant tobe chair of a department,” Ms.

Almon said. “I always thought Iwanted to run a program when I’mold — maybe when I’m 40 or 50 —not now.”

But she dove into the job and figured out what the programlacked. She renamed it the Department of Biomedical Art and revamped the traditional programinto one that uses various aspectsof technology.

“She’s really high energy, verybright and very articulate,” saidDavid Deming, president of theCleveland Institute of Art.

“To an area that had a long tradition of drawing, painting andphotography skills, she brings that,plus computer technology at a veryhigh level.”

Ms. Almon also continues to freelance through her companyBioMed Visuals: Medical & ScientificMedia Co., where she has workedfor well-known clients such as Bayer Pharmaceuticals Corp.

— Shannon Mortland

Why does Ryan Andersonlove his job?

“It’s a fun business tobe in,” the 28-year-old

co-founder of executive search firmAnderson/Biro LLC says, “becauseall you need to do is talk to people.”

Talking. Listening. Learning.They’re like breathing to the 2002John Carroll University graduate,who majored in industrial/organi-zational psychology after moving toCleveland from western New Yorkto attend college.

Though he “didn’t know the firstthing about recruiting” when hestarted interning at American Human Resource Associates inMayfield Village, Mr. Anderson tookto the field quickly.

“It’s an involved process,” he said.“Every company has a different culture, and not every candidate fits every culture. In order to be successful, it’s important to learnhow to talk to and engage differentpersonalities.”

A few months before his collegegraduation, Mr. Anderson said,many of his friends “were worryingabout getting jobs.”

Not him, though: “I liked what Iwas doing and started working there(at AHRA) right out of school.”

He met Eric Biro in that first job,and in April 2007, the pair foundedtheir own firm specializing insearches for financial executives inthe real estate business.

Recently, they moved into officeson Superior Avenue East. Mr.

Anderson said they’re both “bigfans of businesses moving down-town.” He says that loyalty to citiesin part reflects his tendency to rootfor the underdog — after all, hegrew up a Buffalo Bills fan.

“It has this sort of ‘up-and-coming’ feel to it,” Mr. Andersonsaid of Cleveland. “There’s some-thing about being successful herethat’s appealing to me.”

Spend a little while talking to Mr.Anderson, and it becomes clear hekeeps his eyes and ears open onmany fronts. He’s a huge Indiansand Cavaliers fan, though he admitsthe Browns finish second to theBills in his book. He likes exploringthe Great Lakes Science Center, and is hooked on science-relatedtelevision shows and the writing ofMichael Crichton. He’s also a bigfan of the Rock and Roll Hall ofFame and Museum.

Professionally, he’s an activemember of the local 20/30 Club —he’ll begin a year as its president inMay — and belongs to the Down-town Cleveland Alliance and theNational Association of IndustrialOffice Properties.

“I really enjoy learning,” Mr. Anderson said. “I like to listen andsoak it up like a sponge.”

— John Booth

Joshua Bruff enjoys jazz and hip-hop music, lighting up aMacanudo cigar, playing Mad-den Football on his computer,

and, in a Cleveland Heights recre-ation league, playing basketball on ateam with Developers Diversified Realty Corp. colleagues.

“We only won three games lastyear,” Mr. Bruff said, not mentioningthe number of roundball losses, reflecting the young executive’s driveto win at what he undertakes.

Mr. Bruff is responsible for managing 12 enclosed shoppingmalls and six office and industrialbuildings totaling 5 million squarefeet of property. He won the job,which typically is filled by peoplewith eight years of experience, aftercompleting the Beachwood company’s Management TrainingProgram in 2007.

“Senior management’s philosophyis that if you are capable to do thejob, regardless of your background,you can get it,” Mr. Bruff said. “Thisjob is like a dream come true.”

The oldest of three children of Jamaican emigrants, Mr. Bruff grewup near Hartford, Conn., where heattended public and private schoolsuntil gaining admission to Avon OldFarms, a prep school. From there, he

◆ Louis J. Buchino ◆Age: 29

ControllerMirifex Systems LLC

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APRIL 28-MAY 4, 2008 CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS T-3

credits good grades rather than athletic prowess with getting him intoHamilton College in Clinton, N.Y.

Mr. Bruff, whose degree is incommunication, picked DevelopersDiversified over jobs in insuranceand investment banking because ofthe realty company’s intensiveManagement Training Program.

Daniel Hurwitz, Developers Diversified president and chief operating officer, said Mr. Bruff wasone of four college graduates thecompany accepted for the programfrom 75 applicants in 2005.

The soft-spoken Mr. Bruff “is ableto manage multiple activities at onetime,” said John Kokinchak, execu-tive vice president of property management, who supervised Mr.Bruff directly as a trainee.

Mr. Bruff said he relishes the opportunity to manage enclosedmalls as well as office and industrialproperties because it gives him a different niche from the company’sfocus on open-air shopping centers.

One job he especially enjoyed wasworking with Developers Diversi-fied’s construction department on a$5 million renovation to repositionthe 300,000-square-foot Apollo OfficeBuilding, an older office building inChelmsford, Mass. He also managedoutside brokers who took its occu-pancy to 85% from 35%.

“Every time I signed a lease I feltlike I added value,” Mr. Bruff said. Helives in a Euclid apartment buildingbecause he prizes its lake view, but isconsidering buying in the suburbs.

— Stan Bullard

Louis Buchino says people reveal a lot about themselveswhile playing basketball —and he’s no different.

Mr. Buchino manages all thingsfinance for information technologycompany Mirifex Systems LLC ofStrongsville. He says playing basketball is a great way to networkbecause on the court it’s easy tolearn if someone is, say, a teamplayer or a ball hog.

Or a competitor, like Mr. Buchino.“I’m not a mean person on the

court, but I like to go 100%,” he said.He’s no different at Mirifex,

which provides IT staffing, assess-ment and outsourcing services. TheRocky River resident has helped revamp its accounting system sincejoining the firm in August 2005.

For instance, the company nowcreates financial statements foreach division and each locationwhere Mirifex places staff. That information has helped Mirifex cut more than $1 million in admin-

istrative expenses over the lastyear-and-a-half, he said.

The opportunity to have an immediate impact at Mirifex is a big reason Mr. Buchino disregardedprevious plans to work for a Fortune 500 company.

“Anywhere else I was thinking Iwould be told what to do from thestart,” he said.

The Louisville, Ky., native movedto Ohio to study accounting and finance at the University of Dayton.Once he became a certified publicaccountant, he and his wife, Cheryl,

a Rocky River native, moved toNortheast Ohio.

Mr. Buchino took a position atthe Cleveland office of public accounting firm Plante & MoranPLLC. Within weeks he met MirifexCEO Bill Nemeth, a Plante &Moran client. Not only did the twohit it off, but Mr. Nemeth triggeredMr. Buchino’s interest in helpingrun a business.

They stayed in touch until Mr.Buchino left Plante & Moran tosplit his time between workingpart time for Mirifex and studyingfor his MBA from Case Western Reserve University.

It was through CWRU that Mr.Buchino became a member ofPromise Partners, a group of activeand aspiring entrepreneurs tied to

the Weatherhead School of Management. Ron Majka, a seniorvice president at National City Corp. and managing partner for Promise Partners, praised Mr. Buchino’swork ethic and networking skills.

“He’s got a lot of potential, givenhis drive and ambition and focusfor getting things done,” Mr. Majkasaid.

Mr. Buchino also is part-owner ofBluegrass Brewing Co. of Louisville,and promotes the microbrewery’sbeer at local establishments. Hecoaches youth soccer, and he andhis wife, who have a 1-year-old son,Kevin, enjoy running in the Cleveland Metroparks.

“That’s the best part of Cleveland, in my eyes,” he said.

— Chuck Soder

CCLB 04-28-08 A T2,T3 CCLB.qxp 4/23/2008 3:14 PM Page 1

The onlything thatkeeps DanCavolo up

at night is hisschedule.

The 29-year-old owner and presi-dent of The Loyola Group LLCspends his days — and sometimeshis nights — helping companies,governments and nonprofitschoose, implement and managetechnology that will help them accomplish their goals.

The hours can be crazy, Mr.Cavolo said, but the feeling hegets when he knows he’s givenhis all to a customer helps himget his shuteye.

“I sleep like a baby,” he said.Mr. Cavolo typically runs the

company during the day, but it isn’t unusual for him to visit aclient at 3 a.m. to train the nightstaff on a new technology, particu-larly because The Loyola Group’smain customers are continuingcare retirement communities,which run around the clock. Healso does his share of late-nightdriving, because some of thoseclients are hours away.

“It’s a lot of 24-hour days,” hesaid.

That kind of commitment isnecessary to build trust withclients, Mr. Cavolo said.

“It’s hard to gain people’s trustin a short amount of time,” hesaid, adding that all 30 groupsthe company has served haveagreed to be references.

The formula so far has helpedThe Loyola Group, founded inJune 2006, reach $500,000 in cumulative sales as of Feb. 29.The company, technically basedat Mr. Cavolo’s Wickliffe home,today has three full-time and twopart-time employees who workat home and on site with clients.

Work isn’t the only thing Mr.Cavolo crams into his schedule.

The 1997 St. Ignatius HighSchool graduate ishead coach of thejunior high varsityteam combined

from St. Clare School in Lynd-hurst and St. Francis of AssisiSchool in Gates Mills. Mr. Cavolo,who played defensive back andother positions on his highschool team, said he loves helping kids challenge them-selves as they learn the game.

“It’s about more than just winning and losing,” said Mr.Cavolo, who earned a bachelor’sin finance from the University ofDayton and a master’s in busi-ness administration from Cleve-land State University. “It’s aboutlife. It’s about pushing yourselfthrough barriers.”

Mr. Cavolo also owns a web-based startup called SportsForms Online LLC, which he began in mid-2007 to help highschool athletic directors keeptrack of documents. In addition,he and three friends started ascholarship fund for student-athletes involved in communityservice, and he has donated timeto assess the technology needs ofcharities such as the Hunger Network of Greater Cleveland.

Allison Chance has workedwith Mr. Cavolo through her positions as president of the network and assistant director offinance for the city of BedfordHeights, a Loyola Group customer. Ms. Chance said shehas been impressed by the wayhe can get people with disagree-ments to work together. She alsolauded the work he does for charities such as hers as well ashis overall set of talents.

“I can only imagine what he’lldo with it in his 30s and 40s andbeyond,” Ms. Chance said.

— Chuck Soder


◆ Daniel J. Cavolo ◆Age: 29

PresidentThe Loyola Group LLC

◆ Conor Coakley ◆Age: 29

Assistant vice presidentColliers Ostendorf-Morris

◆ Dan Cooper ◆Age: 26

Senior sales associateNAI Daus

As Conor Coakley works onreal estate assignments forclients as varied asGoodyear Tire & Rubber

Co. and the Catholic Diocese ofCleveland, he takes to the table thelong-term view of a city plannerand get-it-done experience as adeputy chief of staff in the JaneCampbell administration in Cleve-land.

“We have a different sense of value for the community and whatneeds to be done next,” said Mr.Coakley, who describes as “an adventure” his experience sincejoining the Colliers Ostendorf-Morris real estate brokerage in 2006.

“Unlike a lot of guys in this busi-ness, I have a diverse client base, soeach day is different,” Mr. Coakleysaid. “It’s a feast-or-famine busi-ness, but there is a nucleus of youngguys here that have been helpful.”

Joseph Martanovic, a Colliers senior vice president, describes Mr. Coakley as a quick study unimpeded by his high-poweredbackground.

“As far as learning the businessgoes, he absorbs things like asponge,” Mr. Martanovic said.

Mr. Coakley did not plan tospend more than a summer in 2001in Cleveland after finishing his degree at Fordham University inNew York with concentrations inarchitecture, art history and urbanstudies. That summer he tendedbar, worked with architect AnthonyPaskevich and realized he did notwant to follow his longtime wish tobecome an architect. After the 9/11attacks, when two college acquain-

tances died in the World Trade Center collapse, returning to NewYork lost its appeal. He found workthat winter in the new Campbell administration.

Chris Ronayne, now president ofthe University Circle Inc. nonprofitdevelopment corporation and one-time chief of staff for former MayorCampbell, said Mr. Coakley under-took increasingly important tasksduring the four years they workedtogether at City Hall. While there,Mr. Coakley met and worked on cityinitiatives with David O’Neill, a Colliers principal who offered him work when he found out Mr.Coakley was in the market.

Besides contemporary contacts,Mr. Coakley has deep connectionsin the city: His grandfather was afounder of American Sprinkler Co.,his father, George Coakley, is a liti-gator at Reminger Attorneys at Law,and his mother, Cathy Barrie, is apotent force in the city’s art scene.

Since settling here after college,the St. Ignatius High School alum

and Cleveland Heights native hasenjoyed exploring what he termsthe city’s “nooks and crannies.” Hehas lived in several parts of it, fromnear Case Western Reserve Univer-sity to downtown in the BinghamBuilding. He now lives in BatteryPark, the tony development on thecity’s West Side.

Mr. Coakley continues civic contributions by working with St.Baldrick’s Foundation, which fundschildren’s cancer research, and St.Malachi Church in Ohio City. Healso is active with the “Young Leaders” subcommittee of the Urban Land Institute trade groupand plays in a Sunday bocce ballleague in Little Italy.

While he knows the city’s woes,he said he values its “overlooked”quality of life and is optimisticabout its future.

“We’ve got to get past the pastand look to the future and realizeour biggest asset is our people,” Mr.Coakley said.

— Stan Bullard

Dan Cooper belongs to anexclusive club in the commercial real estatebusiness: In 2007, he was a

$1 million-a-year broker.That is, he earned net commis-

sions topping $1 million as hisCooper Commercial InvestmentGroup at NAI Daus in Beachwoodsold $265 million in 35 propertydeals last year. He said he hopes todo “very well again this year,” although he must deal with a challenging credit crunch.

The 26-year-old senior sales asso-ciate was the top-grossing agent lastyear at the high-power, 15-brokerNAI Daus shop. One source of hissuccess is attitude.

“Working on deals is fun,” Mr.Cooper said. “It’s problem-solving.I like working with wealthy ownerswho are finally selling things oryoung guys developing, and fillingthings is fun. There is a real feelingof accomplishment when you’veworked on a deal for six monthsand finally got it done.”

Another key to Mr. Cooper’s riseis the way he and his team embracetechnology. Jeff Kahn, president ofNAI Daus, said Mr. Cooper’s mastery of the Internet as a way tosell property not only in Clevelandbut nationwide distinguishes himfrom brokers just a few years older

than himself.“It’s a new generation, a new way

of doing things,” Mr. Kahn said.The Internet also accounts for Mr.

Cooper’s formation in 2006 of theCooper Commercial InvestmentGroup to distinguish the group asspecialists. The team includes BobHavasi, who is even younger than Mr.Cooper, and Mr. Cooper’s wife, Melissa Trillis, who joined her husband’s team from a job at shop-ping center giant Developers Divers-fied Realty Corp. in Beachwood.

The other way Mr. Cooperachieved his stature is by focusing

on the proverbial overlooked niche.In this case, it is concentrating on$5 million to $10 million sales ofproperty, Mr. Cooper said, compared with many commercialbrokers who focus on deals withvalues above $30 million.

Ms. Trillis said members of herand Mr. Cooper’s family are some-times “in disbelief” about the magnitude of his sales. For his part,Mr. Cooper said he got a feel forsmall business and sales from hisfather, Ken Cooper, an insurancebroker, and a love of educationfrom his mother, Sylvia, an elementary school principal.

Mr. Cooper grew up in Westlake,and he and Ms. Trillis now live inShaker Heights. After graduatingfrom John Carroll University in2003, he learned the real estatebusiness first as a mortgage brokerand then as a broker for RMS Investments of Cleveland.

“I know how a buyer and sellerlook at a deal,” Mr. Cooper said.“Half of what we do is overcome objections.”

Long term, he wants to ownproperty himself to provide morestability for a career in brokerage.To that end, he already owns adrugstore in Wooster occupied by aMedicine Shoppe pharmacy. Healso owns Jamaican-Me Tan in University Heights, a 15-employeetanning salon he opened in 2005 after noting how much need therewas for it while he was a John Carroll student.

— Stan Bullard

CCLB 04-28-08 Twenty in 20s 4 CCLB 4/23/2008 3:05 PM Page 1

When most peoplechoose a shampoo orsoap, they likely don’tthink about how the

product was developed. But KellyDobos does.

As a research chemist for GojoIndustries Inc. in Akron, Ms. Dobos,29, spends her days figuring outhow to create products and tweaktheir chemical composition tomake them, for example, morefoamy or airy.

“In some way, I have the powerto make somebody feel better, evenif it’s just through the color of theirlip gloss,” she said.

Ms. Dobos’ interest in improvingpeople’s lives led her to seek an MBAfrom Cleveland State University aftergraduating from Oberlin College witha degree in chemistry. Though she already had been a chemist at placessuch as Scott Labs and Bonne BellCo., she said she wanted a businessdegree so she could learn how theproducts she helps make reach themarket and are sold.

Ms. Dobos now is enrolled at theUniversity of Cincinnati, where she isstudying for her second master’s degree, this time in cosmetic science.

“Cosmetic science is not some-thing you learn in undergrad,” shesaid. “I wanted to be the best formulator I could be.”

Ms. Dobos isn’t surprised sheturned out to be a scientist. Theself-described “tomboy” alwaysbrought home reptiles and bugs.She became so interested in naturethat her mother signed her up as avolunteer at a local park in herhometown of Struthers, Ohio, whenshe was still in elementary school.

“I was riding my bike to go dovolunteer work,” she said.

Her work is a little more involvedthese days, and Ms. Dobos said she loves the uncertainty of howchemicals will mix together andhow she can end up with a completely different product thanshe expected. Though trial and error can sometimes take a while,she said her parents instilled in herhard work and perseverance.

“You make some really goodguesses up front,” she said. “Thenthere are those great moments ofserendipity.”

Ms. Dobos is always willing to helpout a colleague and go the extramile, said Marcia Snyder, who usedto work with Ms. Dobos at Gojo andnow is an account manager for De-Forest Enterprises Inc., a specialtychemical maker in Boca Raton, Fla.

“So many people are competitivein the workplace, and she’s willingto help out her colleagues,” Ms.Snyder said. “You want people likethat on your staff.”

Ms. Dobos isn’t likely to exitacademia when she finishes atCincinnati next year. She hopes towrite books and publish papers inscientific journals.


◆ Kelly Dobos ◆Age: 29

Research chemistGojo Industries Inc.

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◆ Brandy J. Dunlap ◆Age: 25

Long-range plannerGreater Cleveland

Regional Transit Authority

◆ Miguelle Edmondson ◆Age: 29

Audit managerErnst & Young

◆ Fred Franks Jr. ◆Age: 27

Director of managed IT servicesFit Technologies/SchoolOne.com LLC

◆ Sarah HawkinsDolezal ◆

Age: 27Property manager/

marketing coordinatorThe Arcade/

Chartwell Group LLC

Brandy Dunlap doesn’t justplan the future of publictransportation at theGreater Cleveland Regional

Transit Authority. She lives it everyday as she rides the Blue Line rapidtransit to work.

“I try not to use my car as muchas possible,” she said.

The only problem is that Ms.Dunlap isn’t learning her wayaround her new hometown asquickly as she might if she were driving a car to work and had toplot her way around the inevitabletraffic jams. So, on the weekendsshe gets tangled up in the radiatingstreets of Greater Cleveland.

“I need a GPS,” she said, laughing.Except for her disorientation, and

the occasional heavy snowstorm,the Columbus native is happy to bein Cleveland.

“Cleveland is one of those citiesthat’s gotten a (bad) rap,” she said.“In the near future, I think the city

Miguelle Edmondsonswitched his college major from communica-tions to accounting, but

apparently he didn’t need the communications degree anyway.

It seems those skills are so polished, yet so natural, that combined with his fluency for numbers, Mr. Edmondson’s talentsat 29 have advanced him into an audit manager at Ernst & Young anda visible community figure.

He audits several Fortune 500companies on a global level at Ernst& Young’s Cleveland office. He ismulling the idea of living abroad inChina at an Ernst & Young U.S. affiliate, where he would assumemore audit responsibilities andmore clients, then would bring theexperience and networking back tothe United States.

“I work on things people in my roletypically don’t work on. I strive to bea more well-rounded professional,”said Mr. Edmondson, who earned his undergraduate degree from theUniversity of Toledo and his masterof science in accountancy from University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

Fred Franks Jr. started his career before he earned adiploma.

That’s a big reason why the27-year-old already is a major player at Cleveland informationtechnology company SchoolOne.com LLC, which does business asFit Technologies.

Mr. Franks, who is director ofmanaged IT services for the company,jumped into the field during highschool and worked full-time jobs inthe industry through college.

The traditional route — finishingschool before starting a career —was too slow, he said.

“Why should I wait four years todo something I can do now?” Mr.Franks said.

Today, he oversees a team of 40employees at Fit Technologies,which implements and managescomputer technology and buildssoftware for schools, companiesand other organizations.

Mr. Franks also assists in hiring,consults with some of the company’slarger customers and helps shapeits strategies.

For instance, he pushed Fit Tech-

nologies to begin reselling computerequipment to its customers, and heurged the company to pursue whatnow is its largest customer, theCleveland Metropolitan School District.

He credits the company for giving him and others room tocontribute ideas.

“The culture allows individuals

with talents to blossom,” Mr.Franks said.

Mr. Franks gained an apprecia-tion for business from his parents,who run the Akron Auto Clinic indowntown Akron. He watched andlearned as they took calls, countedmoney and grew the repair shopfrom its beginnings in the familygarage.

Mr. Edmondson is a member ofCleveland Bridge Builders, an orga-nization that identifies and trainsyoung emerging leaders, and aboard consultant with AmericaSCORES Cleveland, which teachesat-risk youth creative writing, soccer and community service.

“It’s like a great MBA program,”he said. “The professor is not theonly one imparting knowledge. Thepeers are, too.”

Mr. Edmondson also is a class-room volunteer for Junior Achieve-ment and Inroads, a group focusedon the development of talented minority students.

“It’s good to hear ‘be all that youcan be,’ but when you actually seesomeone in that role, it’s anotherstory,” he said.

And for someone who was co-captain of Maple Heights HighSchool’s football team and the leading role in “The King and I”

Sarah Hawkins Dolezal’s pedometer has forgiven her.

The 27-year-old propertymanager and marketing

coordinator — note the compoundtitle — of The Old Arcade for realestate concern Chartwell Groupwas a woman on the move whenshe started in August 2005.

“I was running around likecrazy,” she said. “I took about10,000 steps a day.”

A public relations specialist witha real estate pedigree, Mrs. HawkinsDolezal is using all her talents: Sheis the go-to gal for tenants and support staff of the Arcade and isresponsible for promoting the century-old property, which todayis home to retail and office tenantsand the Hyatt Regency hotel in

downtown Cleveland, to Cleve-landers and out-of-towners.

“In my interview with ChartwellGroup, they asked me, if I didn’t getthis job, what I’d be doing in fiveyears,” Mrs. Hawkins Dolezal said.“And I said, ‘real estate.’ This encompasses PR skills I have andreal estate desires.”

Mrs. Hawkins Dolezal earned apublic relations degree from Kent

State University, then worked inthat field for Rainbow Babies &Children’s Hospital and NationalCity Bank.

But she always wanted to be inreal estate, she said, so she inter-viewed for a sales agent’s job atChartwell Group. “I had a coupleinterviews, and it sounded like I’dget the call, but I didn’t,” she said.

Instead, she got a different call,for her current, dual role, and alsois burning her proverbial candle atthe philanthropic end.

She’s fully committed to the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood —where she lives with her husband ofeight months, Michael — from organizing cleanups to investing inand rehabbing neighborhood prop-erties. She admits her in-laws find

school play, Mr. Edmondson demon-strates the ability to fill differentshoes. His skills in recruiting, developing and retaining ethnically diverse employees under the North-east Ohio Affinity Group at Ernst & Young have earned him respectfrom college recruits to corporate colleagues.

“Miguelle leverages some unique

is going to be making progress.”Ms. Dunlap is a long-range plan-

ner at RTA. That means she’s con-stantly evaluating surveys of riders,meeting with community groups andother regional planning agencies tohear about the transportation needsof their members. She takes that information, mashes it together withother transit statistics and demo-graphic information, and presentsher analysis for upper managementand the RTA board of trustees.

It’s her first full-time job afterearning her master’s degree in cityand regional planning at Ohio StateUniversity. Her undergraduate degree is in business administra-tion from Xavier University.

Her fresh eyes have given RTA aboost. Steven Bitto, RTA’s director ofmarketing and Ms. Dunlap’s boss,said she has reorganized the transitagency’s market research efforts.

“Our research was static, not dynamic, the same old thing fromyear to year,” Mr. Bitto said. “Weweren’t getting information thatmanagement could use to make de-cisions. She’s elevated the functionso it now provides really critical infor-mation.”

— Jay Miller


◆ Gayle I. Horwitz ◆Age: 27

AttorneyVorys, Sater, Seymour

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The attraction of a career injournalism was strong, buther father and her father’sfather were attorneys, so it

isn’t surprising that Gayle Horwitzcouldn’t escape the pull of a legalcareer.

Besides, she thinks she made theright choice.

”It’s the perfect job,” she said.“I’m curious and committed topublic service.”

Ms. Horwitz did all the things anaspiring journalist is supposed todo. She studied journalism atGeorge Washington University andhad a series of internships that included ABC News in Washington,Crain’s Cleveland Business and theCleveland Jewish News.

But she felt a pull to participateand not just observe when she covered for the student newspapervarious events sponsored by thestudent Democratic group atGeorge Washington.

That urge and classroom discus-sions about how journalists had tolimit their participation in politicsand civic organizations gave herpause.

She realized a career as a journalistwould limit her ability to be activein community organizations andpolitics.

“I was drawn to public service,”she said.

So, the Beachwood native enrolled at the Georgetown University Law Center and in 2005took a job at Vorys, Sater, Seymourand Pease LLP in Cleveland.

Since her return to NortheastOhio, she has worked on two political campaigns and is on the board of the Cleveland JewishNews.

Ms. Horwitz also is active in several legal organizations, including one she helped start —the Cleveland chapter of the American Constitution Society, aprogressive counterpart to the conservative Federalist Society.

“It’s a place to connect profes-sional and political interests,” she said of the organization, which she first encountered in lawschool.

“Cleveland has a vibrant legalcommunity,” she said. “I saw aneed for an ACS chapter.”

The chapter organized in 2007

and elected Ms. Horwitz its firstpresident.

“It’s impossible not to say fabulous things about Gayle,” saidMichael Bennett, publisher of theCleveland Jewish News. “She has avery sharp insight into the needs ofour community and how our organization can better serve theJewish community.”

Mr. Bennett was particularly impressed with her efforts to engage young adults to find outwhat would make the weekly newspaper more relevant to them.

“She’s spent a lot of time talkingto members of that demographic,coming up with ideas to involvethem in the process of how we canbecome more relevant and impor-tant to readers and viewers of theweb site,” he said. “She really divedinto it like a pro.”

— Jay Miller

“I saw how a small business operates,” he said.

While a senior at Revere HighSchool in Richfield, he worked parttime for the Independence divisionof credit reporting company Trans-Union, and he joined the staff fulltime as a network administrator after graduating in 1999.

A year later, he became one ofthe youngest members of the ITteam at Sherwin-Williams Co. inCleveland.

All the while, he studied for hisbachelor’s in business administrationat the University of Akron. He nowis pursing an MBA at Case WesternReserve University.

Mr. Franks’ experience was a bigreason he got his first managementjob at Fit Technologies in the summer of 2005, said CEO MickiTubbs. She said Mr. Franks since hasimpressed her with his integrity andhis ability to stay cool under pressure— even though he looks evenyounger than he is.

“Once people have the ability tospeak with him and work with him,that all goes away,” she said.

Mr. Franks gives partial credit forhis success to his wife, Nissa, withwhom he has a 1-year-old son,Freddie, and another child on theway.

“If it wasn’t for my wife, I wouldnot have sanity,” he said.

— Chuck Soder

talents,” said Walt Avdey, a partnerat Ernst & Young in Cleveland whorecruits with Mr. Edmondson. “Heunderstands relationships, and hismaturity level is very high. He doesn’t flinch. If there’s an oppor-tunity to sit down and have a conversation with the CFO, he willdo that.”

When he has free time, Mr. Edmondson likes to Rollerbladeand run. He is training for theCleveland Marathon in May.

Family is important, and he isclose with his twin brother, Lavelle,a marketing analyst in Toledo.

“I begin a lot of sentences with‘My twin brother and I,’” he said.

Mr. Edmondson grew up in alower middle-class, single-parenthousehold, but believes life hasbeen rich with opportunity. His enthusiasm in reaching out to students and the community primarily is his way of giving back.

“Everyone has a passion aboutsomething,” he said. “I encourageeveryone to get involved with sometype of service. It’s amazing tomake a difference.”

— Kathy Ames Carr

amusing Mantua (her) and Middle-field (him) natives living and work-ing in an urban setting.

She is committee person forWard 17’s first precinct, a memberof the Detroit Shoreway Develop-ment Organization and a block clubleader.In addition, Mrs. HawkinsDolezal was integral in the forma-tion of the Ward 17 Community Forum, on which she is now a co-chair and drives dialogue within theward to enhance connectedness.

Said Matt Zone, Cleveland CityCouncil’s Ward 17 representative:“For someone as young as she is,she’s very poised. She has the po-tential to be a great future leader.Her communication skills are great;she has a very infectious nature.”

— Joel Hammond


before becoming the director of events.

COSE events typically focus on marketing, sales,human resources and networking.

“I think networking ishuge, it’s really importantfor people to learn fromeach other,” she said.

But it’s becoming moredifficult to get people outfor events, so Mrs. Kim saidCOSE now records itsevents and makes themavailable for podcasting.

“Just because you don’tget 50 people to an event, ifthere are 25 people you impact, that’s important,”she said. “And then we canpost it and it’s continually aresource for members;that’s important, too.”

Mrs. Kim said she can seeherself becoming more involved with her husband’sbusiness — he runs two taekwon do centers in the western suburbs — but shealso hopes to build a careerof her own, growing beyondevent planning.

One of her former bossesexpects she will succeed atwhatever she does.

“She’s exceptional,” saidJim Cookinham, who recently retired as a vicepresident at COSE.

“You could walk into heroffice and say, ‘I’ve got onemore thing for you to do,’

and she would always take on the responsibility,” Mr. Cookinham said.“She was always very open to addingmore and more responsibility andputting more things on her plate.”

— Jay Miller


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◆ Matt Radicelli ◆Age: 29

Founder and ownerRock the House

Entertainment Group

No slight to herhusband John, asmall businessowner whose

photo is on her desk, butfor Megan Kim, their wedding last August wasjust another event — atleast the logistics and planning part of it was.

After all, only 300 peopleattended, so it wasn’t any-where close to the largestof the 120 events Mrs. Kimplanned last year.

Mrs. Kim is director ofevents and programs at theCouncil of Smaller Enter-prises, the group that is thepolitical voice, health insurer, post-graduate educator and networkinghome for 16,000-plus smallbusiness owners in Northeast Ohio.

The group’s multidimen-sional nature means she isin charge of putting oneverything from a round-table for 10 people to theSmall Business Conferencethat attracts 1,500.

“I love coming to work,”Mrs. Kim said. “I have anopportunity everyday tohelp small business owners, helping their busi-nesses grow. I feel like I’mmaking a difference.”

Mrs. Kim grew up inNorth Royalton and left forOhio University with a planto be a broadcaster.

“I didn’t have a passion for it,though,” she realized early on. “Ihated my own voice.”

Instead, she focused on publicrelations. She got the event plan-ning bug during an internship at

University Hospitals of Cleveland,where she worked in the develop-ment department. She’s been atCOSE since 2005, starting as anevent coordinator. In short order,she became a senior manager

Matt Radicelli, founderand owner of Rock theHouse EntertainmentGroup in Oakwood

Village, did his first DJ gig at age 7.By the time he was a teenager, hewas earning money at it.

These days, the 29-year-oldworks out of a 6,000-square-foot office and oversees 300 to 400events a year. And though he considers himself an entrepreneurfirst and an entertainer second, Mr.Radicelli still says with a smile, “I’venever been in a hurry to grow up.”

The 1999 incorporation of Rockthe House seemed practically predestined: Mr. Radicelli’s parents, Jeni and Jack Radicelli,were the manager and DJ, respec-tively, of a Streetsboro club in hispre-teen years, so he started learning the ropes early.

“My dad taught me how to fill infor him,” Mr. Radicelli recalled.“‘Push this button’ and ‘Turn thatfilter up.’”

And it sparked an interest in tinkering, too. “I didn’t want to playwith G.I. Joes,” he said. “I was taking radios apart. I was workingwith my grandfather in the base-ment, building circuits.”

At 13, he started his own disc

jockey business — his mom financed the equipment, but Mr.Radicelli said he paid her back for itover the course of a single summer.

In high school, he organized apublic party that attracted 1,000kids. Why? Mr. Radicelli’s initial reaction is that he did things likethis because he was bored, but headded that he was also driven bythe challenge — and the money hewas earning.

By the middle of his senior yearof high school, Mr. Radicelli wasdesigning and installing video andaudio systems for nightclubs andrestaurants.

Though he’s quick to credit thefriends and family who have helpedhim along the way, Mr. Radicelliadmitted that stepping back frommicromanaging every event hasbeen a bit of a struggle. Rock the

House has six full-time employeesand works regularly with about 36part-time employees such as DJs,dancers, emcees and technicians.Most of its events are family cele-brations, but the company alsohandles large-scale corporate parties as far away as Texas andCalifornia.

“I’m still learning what I shouldbe doing,” Mr. Radicelli said. “I’veonly recently learned the power ofdelegation and letting people inyour organization do what theydo.”

Mr. Radicelli and his wife, Kristen,whom he met in sixth grade, live inTwinsburg and have two children.

— John Booth

◆ Megan Kim ◆Age: 26

Director of events and programsCouncil of Smaller Enterprises

“I’ve only recently learned the power of delegation andletting people in your organization do what they do.” – Matt Radicelli



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For Erin Reed, Hurricane Katrina was a blessing in disguise.

New Orleans hadn’t alwaysworked out well for Ms. Reed, whomoved there in May 2003 to take asales position with Newell Rubber-maid Inc. after graduating from Miami University. She was laid offsix months later.

“It was a stab in the heart for mebecause I had put all the faith in theworld in (this job),” said Ms. Reed,26. “I didn’t have a chance to buildup anything to sustain myself for awhile.”

Just before she planned to moveback home to Lakewood in late2003, she was offered a job that involved training franchisees of aday spa. She enjoyed the job fornearly two years before HurricaneKatrina devastated the area.

Ms. Reed was visiting a friend inSan Francisco when the storm hit.With a weekend’s worth of clothesin her bag, she flew to Ohio andworked from her parents’ home inLakewood for awhile for the day spafranchiser before deciding therewas nothing left for her in New Orleans.

The uncertainty of her futuresubsided when she saw an ad for amarketing position at Cleveland

◆ Erin Reed ◆Age: 26

Marketing manager JumpStart Inc.

venture development group Jump-Start Inc. Though she had a back-ground in marketing, Ms. Reed haddiscovered a love for entrepreneur-ship when she took courses on thesubject in college. The job seemedto be a perfect fit.

As the marketing manager atJumpStart, Ms. Reed helps Jump-Start’s 26 portfolio companies withtheir marketing efforts so they’reready to present themselves to angel funds and investors in North-east Ohio and out of state. She alsoattempts to sell Northeast Ohio asmore than a “flyover zone” to investors outside the area.

When she isn’t working directlywith companies, Ms. Reed helpsplan JumpStart’s marketing eventsin 21 Northern Ohio counties; thoseevents can range from small gatherings to the annual meetingthat attracts more than 600 people.

“She is one of those rare peoplewho can think big-picture strategybut also do tactics and be very detailed in the execution,” saidTiffan Clark, vice president of

marketing at JumpStart. “She justtakes a project and runs with it.”

Describing herself as a “go-getter” and a “doer,” Ms. Reed saidshe enjoys being around peoplewho are willing to “take the bull bythe horns” and create their ownproducts and companies.

“It’s easier to sit back and it’seasier to see what’s wrong, but it’s awhole new ballgame to actually dosomething about it,” she said.

“She is one of those rare people who can think big-picture strategy but also do tactics and be very detailedin the execution.” – Tiffan Clark, vice president of marketing, JumpStart Inc.

In her leisure time, Ms. Reed isrenovating the house in Lakewoodshe bought in 2006. Using the helpof friends and family, she has taken on construction projects

such as installing new windowsand insulation, tearing down wallsand putting up drywall — without hiring professionals.


ON THE WEB Want to hear more from our honorees? We sat each of them down for a video interview, which can be found by logging on to www.CrainsCleveland.com/Twenty.



◆ Michelle Stein ◆Age: 26

Marketing and Business Development Manager

Brunswick Cos.

After graduating from theUniversity of Findlay,Meredith Scerba had agoal: “I really wanted to

take my passion for sports andbusiness and put them together.”

Mission accomplished, then, forthe 29-year-old in her third year asdirector of events for the GreaterCleveland Sports Commission.

“It was exactly what I was lookingfor,” said Ms. Scerba, who joinedthe commission after a few years asevent coordinator for the ClevelandCavaliers.

She and her husband, Matt, areboth former college swimmers, andshe’s a die-hard NCAA basketballfan. Ms. Scerba, though, has foundher sports horizons expanding dramatically at the commission.

“There are definitely some sportsI knew nothing about,” she said,“but you get around these peoplewho are passionate about theirsport, and it’s contagious.”

Boxing. Wrestling. Tae kwon do.She gets caught up in them all.

“I have to understand the sportand what their (fans’) passions areand what their ambitions are to successfully run an event,” Ms. Scerbasaid. “I even catch myself watchingthe soccer channel sometimes.”

When Cleveland hosted the

NCAA Women’s Final Four in 2007,it was Ms. Scerba’s job to recruitand manage the more than 1,000volunteers to staff the event, whichSportsTravel magazine readers selected as the best collegiatesports event of the 2006-2007 year.

Sports commission presidentDavid Gilbert said Ms. Scerba alsohas made a huge impact in thecommission’s home-grown events,such as the Continental Cup, an international youth soccer tournament entering its third year.

“Not only has she been instru-mental in creating those events, butin getting things incredibly well-organized, so the second year is not as much effort and we can concentrate on improvement and not invention,” Mr. Gilbert said.

And, Ms. Scerba said, there’s moreto her job than just coordinating allthe aspects of these large-scaleevents: There’s the task of puttingCleveland’s fingerprints on them sothat they’ll want to come back.

“It’s about making sure we do thisevent better and differently than anyother city,” Ms. Scerba said.

The Scerbas live in Westlake and,Ms. Scerba said, spend “every possible weekend in the summer”water skiing and wakeboarding.

— John Booth

Michelle Stein is the kind ofperson you meet for thefirst time and within fiveminutes, you’re old

friends catching up, chatting abouther career plans, school and weddingplanning.

Ms. Stein’s communication skills,combined with experience and education, have enabled her to establish herself as a credible marketing and business develop-ment manager, rather than theboss’s daughter at Brunswick Cos.Her father, Todd, and her grandfa-ther, Mort, own the Fairlawn insur-ance risk management firm, whichhas more than 40 employees.

“I wanted to be known asMichelle, not the boss’s daughter,”said Ms. Stein, 26. “I wanted peopleto respect working with me, so Ilearned the business from the bottom up.”

After graduating in 2004 fromPenn State with a marketing major,Ms. Stein moved to Chicago, whereshe worked for more than two yearsas a Brunswick employee within theoffice of one of Brunswick’s biggestinsurance clients, shopping mallowner General Growth Properties.

She moved back more than ayear ago to work at the Fairlawn office, where Ms. Stein has helpedmodernize computer systems andinitiate a web site redesign.

Ms. Stein is helping direct the office toward a paperless system.She has coordinated the develop-ment of a “prospecting system,” inwhich clients electronically can fillout forms requesting insurance-related needs.

“Our motto is to work smart,” shesaid.

Each department is involved inthe web site redesign, she said.There is more product cross-selling,

◆ Meredith Scerba ◆Age: 29

Director of Events Greater Cleveland Sports Commission

CCLB 04-28-08 Twenty in 20s 10 CCLB 4/24/2008 8:17 AM Page 1

◆ Steve Wiser ◆Age: 29

President Specialized Business

Software Inc.


which has brought the differentdepartments, such as surety bondsand commercial insurance, closertogether.

“Before, people were all operatingin their own silos,” she said. “Theenergy is amazing. People see whatwe’re doing is not only more efficient for Brunswick, it’s moreefficient for them.”

Ms. Stein talks to people. Shenot only hears what people aresaying, she listens, says DianaBaitz, business administrator.

“She’s like our human resourcesdepartment,” Ms. Baitz said. “Shelearns everything about the depart-ments and then sits down with people and finds out a faster way todo their job. It blows my mind.”

Ms. Stein has extended her social network by initiating a program called Out & About at

Case Western Reserve University’sWeatherhead School of Manage-ment, where she is a part-timeMBA student.

Under the program, part-timerslunch at different restaurantsthroughout Northeast Ohio.

Ms. Stein also attended in Marchthe United Jewish Community’s2008 National Young LeadershipConference in Washington, D.C.,in which she and other individualsfrom Jewish communitiesthroughout the nation discussedcritical social and political issues.

Ms. Stein is training for a half-marathon in May. She also enjoysspending time with family, friendsand her fiancé, Evan Hirsch, an attorney at Roetzel & Andress inCleveland. The couple plans tomarry Aug. 31.

— Kathy Ames Carr

Ask Steve Wiserabout his companyand it becomesclear why people

often associate technologywith geekiness — and witheconomic growth.

The 29-year-old owner ofSpecialized Business Soft-ware Inc. admits that heand his co-workers like tospend lunch time playingvideo games and Magic theGathering, a fantasy-themed card game that hasnever been popular amongcheerleaders and footballplayers.

Reserving time for somenerdy midday fun, however,hasn’t stopped the Soloncompany from growing to18 employees and turning aprofit every year since it wasfounded in 1999.

Mr. Wiser, who has a giant pile of Magic cards sitting inthe corner of his office, said hewants his employees to enjoy working at Specialized BusinessSoftware, which makes customizedsoftware for businesses.

Hence, there’s no dress code, thehours are flexible and, if employeesfinish their projects on time, hedoesn’t mind if they take a few moments to chat, goof around orbattle the occasional evil wizard.

“As long as you hit deadlines, theclients are happy,” Mr. Wiser said.

Mr. Wiser graduated from SolonHigh School in 1996 and earned a

bachelor’s in electrical engineeringfrom Cleveland State University justthree years later. Soon thereafter,he started Specialized BusinessSoftware to develop software for hisparents’ company, Loan ProtectorInsurance Services of Solon.

He began as the firm’s only employee, but he hired more people as he started picking upsoftware development work forbanks across the country. Now he’s diversifying the company’scustomer base by focusing on multiple industries, this time inNortheast Ohio.

Mr. Wiser easily couldhave opened shop else-where: He was tempted after college to move to Silicon Valley, where threeof his uncles work. However,he remained here becausehis girlfriend, Ann, who isnow his wife, was still in college.

Mr. Wiser said he doesn’tregret staying. NortheastOhio, he said, has providedhim good developers, is lesscrowded and is home to hisfamily.

“It’s really not that bad ofa place,” said Mr. Wiser,who has two daughters, Natalie, 12, and Megan, 6.

Northeast Ohio is lucky tohave him, according toSteve Kerscher, president ofHudson-based Lexi-CompInc., which provides elec-tronic databases of medicalinformation to doctors andpharmacists.

Mr. Kerscher’s companyuses Specialized BusinessSoftware’s services, and hemeets with Mr. Wiser forcoffee or lunch every few

months to talk business.“Obviously he’s a very bright

individual — technically knowledge-able but entrepreneurial as well,”said Mr. Kerscher, who appeared in“20 in their 20s” last year.

When Mr. Wiser isn’t talkingbusiness, he enjoys playing paintball, watching movies with co-workers, playing video gamesand spending time with his family.

His wife, he noted, does not participate in such geeky hobbies.

“She thinks it’s nerdy,” he saidwith a laugh.

— Chuck Soder

“She learns everything about the departments and thensits down with people and finds out a faster way to dotheir job. It blows my mind.” – Diana Baitz, business administrator, Brunswick Cos.


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